Four boys and four girls from the 16-player Junior Team USA have been selected to compete at the 2008 World Youth Championships, scheduled for July 19-25 at Boardwalk Entertainment Center in Orlando, Fla.

Two Florida natives – reigning U.S. Junior Amateur champion Jenny Brown of DeLand and Michelle Carcagente of Palm Coast – join Emily Maier of Sparks, Nev., and Ricki Williams of Wichita, Kan., as girls team selections for the World Youth Championships, a biennial U-22 tournament being held for the first time in the United States.

Matt O’Grady of South Amboy, N.J., who competed at the 2006 World Youth Championships in Berlin, Germany, leads the boys team that also features first-time team members John Szczerbinski of North Tonawanda, N.Y., Dean Richards of Tacoma, Wash., and Adam Martinez of San Antonio, the reigning U.S. Junior Amateur champion.

Assignments were made by Junior Team USA head coach Rod Ross and assistant coaches Kim Terrell and Teresa Ross as well as volunteer consultants Lou Marquez, Stephen Padilla and Mark Balter following Junior Team USA training camp, May 18-25, in Colorado Springs, Colo.

“With another young, talented group to choose from, this never is an easy decision,” said Ross, a USBC Gold coach. “The players came together as one team at training camp, and not only learned from the coaches they also learned from each other. We are looking forward to some great performances this year from Junior Team USA.”

Four boys and four girls also were selected to compete for Junior Team USA at the Pan American Bowling Confederation (PABCON) Youth Championships, scheduled for Sept. 21-27 in San Salvador, El Salvador.

The boys team at the U-20 event consists of Szczerbinski, Martinez, Josh Buckhardt of Beavercreek, Ohio, and Geoffrey Young of Denton, Texas, while the girls team features Brown, Josie Earnest of Vandalia, Ill., and Sarah Germano of Rochester, N.Y., along with a player meeting the PABCON age requirement (19 years old or younger on Jan. 1, 2008) to be named later by the National Selection Committee.

Burkhardt, Young, Earnest and Germano also will represent the United States in the junior division at the Tournament of the Americas, set for July 27-Aug. 2 at Boardwalk Entertainment Center in Orlando, Fla.

By Kevin Hazaert
USBC Communications

Changes made to Junior Team USA selection process

By Kevin Hazaert
USBC Communications

Junior Team USA, the U.S. national junior bowling team and feeder program for Team USA, will expand to 20 players in 2009 – allowing more elite youth bowlers the opportunity to further develop their skills and represent their country.

The majority of Junior Team USA (comprised of 10 males and 10 females) will continue to be established at the previous year’s United States Bowling Congress Junior Gold Championships, which brings together over 1,500 of the country’s best youth bowlers vying for scholarships and U.S. Junior Amateur titles.

However, new for 2009, additional players will be selected through the USBC Team USA Trials (beginning with the 2009 event), which is held annually in January to help determine Team USA.

“Expanding Junior Team USA will give more of the top young athletes in our sport exposure to the elite coaching and training they will receive in the program,” USBC Team USA High-Performance Director David Garber said. “By adding individuals from the USBC Team USA Trials as well, we will be able strengthen Junior Team USA with even more promising talent.”

Selection process for Junior Team USA 2009:

• Top four male and top four female finishers at the 2008 USBC Junior Gold Championships, which will be held July 5-11 in Detroit.
• Two males and two females, chosen by the National Selection Committee, from the pool of remaining match play advancers at the 2008 USBC Junior Gold Championships.
• Top two males and top two females who are age 20 or under as of Jan. 1, 2009, at the 2009 USBC Team USA Trials (dates and location TBD), provided they are not already on Junior Team USA 2009. These four athletes can be either USBC Youth or Adult members as long as they meet the age requirement.
• Two males and two females, chosen by the National Selection Committee, from a pool of athletes that were either match play finalists at the 2008 USBC Junior Gold Championships or who are age 20 or under as of Jan. 1, 2009, and competed at the 2009 USBC Team USA Trials (dates and location TBD). These four athletes can be either USBC Youth or Adult members as long as they meet the age requirement.

Also beginning in 2009, the Pan American Bowling Confederation (PABCON) Youth Championships (formerly American Zone Youth Championships) will be held on odd-numbered years.

“Previously, Junior Team USA members in odd-numbered years didn’t have the chance to bowl in either the World or PABCON Youth Championships since they were held in the same calendar year,” Garber said. “Now athletes on Junior Team USA will have a competition to strive for each year.”

The 2008 PABCON Youth Championships is tentatively scheduled to be held next September in Lima, Peru.